2 Chronicles 20:25

And when Jehoshaphat and his people came to take away the spoil of them, they found among them in abundance both riches with the dead bodies, and precious jewels, which they stripped off for themselves, more than they could carry away: and they were three days in gathering of the spoil, it was so much.

EXPOSITORY (ENGLISH BIBLE)

Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers

(25) When.—Omit.

They found.—And found.

Among them in abundance both riches.—Instead of bāhèm, “among them,” the LXX. reads bĕhēmâh, “cattle,” which seems preferable. “And found cattle in abundance and substance” (rĕkûsh, movable goods of all sorts, including flocks and herds; Genesis 12:5).

With the dead bodies.—And corpses, which they stripped of their ornaments and clothing. But bĕgādîm, “clothes,” not pĕgārhn, “corpses,” should be read with some MSS., and apparently the Vulg., “inter cadavera . . . vestes quoque.” The Syriac has, “and they found among them a very great spoil and property, and bridles, and horses, and vessels of desire;” the Arabic, “and he found an immense booty, and herds and splendid garments.” The LXX. has τκῦλα, “spoils.”

Precious jewels.—Literally, vessels of desirable things, i.e.,costly articles; a phrase only met with hero: LXX., well, σκεύη ἐπιθυμητὰ.

Which they stripped off for themselves.—Or, and they spoiled them, i.e., the enemy. (Comp. Exodus 3:22; LXX., e ἐσκύλευσαν ἑαυτοῖς.)

More than they could carry away.—Literally, until there was no loading or carrying.

Gathering—i.e., taking away (bôzĕzîm, “plundering”). Comp. Judges 8:24-26 (the spoils of Midian). The amount of the spoil is explained by the circumstance that the invaders had intended to effect a permanent settlement in Judah, and so brought all their goods with them (2Chronicles 20:11). (Comp. Psalm 83:12.) The invasion was thus similar in character to the migrations of the barbarian hordes, which broke repeatedly over the declining Roman empire, though of course it was on a much smaller scale. Its repulse, however, has proved not less momentous in the history of mankind, than that of the Persians at Marathon, or of the Saracens at Roncesvalles. The greatness of the overthrow may be inferred from the fact that the prophet Joel makes it a type of the coming judgment of Israel’s enemies in the “Valley of Jehoshaphat”—a prophetic designation which alludes at once to the catastrophe recorded here, and to the truth that “Jehovah is judge” of all the earth (Joel 3:2; Joel 3:12; Joel 3:14).

Benson Commentary

2 Chronicles 20:25. They found among them in abundance both riches and jewels, &c. — Which they had brought with them to corrupt any of Jehoshaphat’s officers as they saw occasion: to procure necessaries for their vast army from time to time: and because they came as to triumph rather than to fight, being confident of the victory on account of their numbers, and especially because they thought to surprise Jehoshaphat ere he could make any considerable preparations against them; God also permitting them to be puffed up to their own destruction. See how rich in mercy God is to them that call upon him in truth, and how often he out-does the prayers and expectations of his people. Jehoshaphat prayed to be delivered from being spoiled by the enemy, and God not only did that, but enriched them with the spoils of the enemy. Now it appeared what was God’s end in bringing this great army against Judah; it was to humble them, and prove them, that he might do them good in their latter end. It seemed, at first, to be a disturbance to their reformation, but it proves to be a recompense of it.

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary

20:20-30 Jehoshaphat exhorted his troops to firm faith in God. Faith inspires a man with true courage; nor will any thing help more to the establishing of the heart in shaking times, than a firm belief of the power, and mercy, and promise of God. In all our trust in the Lord, and our praises of him, let us especially look at his everlasting mercy to sinners through Jesus Christ. Never was an army so destroyed as that of the enemy. Thus God often makes wicked people destroy one another. And never was a victory celebrated with more solemn thanksgivings.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

Riches with the dead bodies - Several manuscripts give another reading: "riches, and garments."

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

24-26. when Judah came toward the watchtower in the wilderness—Most probably the conical hill, Jebel Fereidis, or Frank Mountain, from the summit of which they obtained the first view of the scene of slaughter. Jehoshaphat and his people found the field strewed with dead bodies, so that they had not to fight at all, but rather to take possession of an immense booty, the collection of which occupied three days. On the fourth they set out on their return to Jerusalem in the same order and joyful mood as they came. The place where they mustered previous to departure was, from their public thanksgiving service, called, "The Valley of Berachah" ("benediction"), now Wady Bereikut.

Matthew Poole's Commentary

Riches and precious jewels; which they brought with them, partly, to corrupt any of Jehoshaphat’s officers as they saw occasion; partly, to procure necessaries for their vast army from time to time; and partly, because they came as to a triumph rather than to a fight, being secure and confident of the victory because of their great numbers, and especially because they thought to surprise Jehoshaphat ere he could make any considerable preparations against them; God also permitting them to be puffed up to their own destruction.

Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible

And when Jehoshaphat and his people came to take the spoil of them,.... Which was all they had to do; they had no need to fight, as they were told, the Lord had fought for them:

they found among them in abundance both riches with the dead bodies; rich garments on them, and gold and silver on them:

and precious jewels, which they stripped of for themselves; with which their clothes, or some part of their bodies, were ornamented:

more than they could carry away; they were so many, that they made too great a burden for them:

and they were three days in gathering of the spoil, it was so much; it took up so much time to strip the bodies, to search for their money and jewels, rings, chains, and such like things of value, worn by them.

Geneva Study Bible

And when Jehoshaphat and his people came to take away the spoil of them, they found among them in abundance both riches with the dead bodies, and precious jewels, which they stripped off for themselves, more than they could carry away: and they were three days in gathering of the spoil, it was so much.

EXEGETICAL (ORIGINAL LANGUAGES)

Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges

25. to take away the spoil] R.V. to take the spoil.

they found among them in abundance both riches with the dead bodies] The Heb. text is faulty. LXX. εὗρον κτήνη πολλὰ καὶ ἀποσκευὴν καὶ σκῦλα, i.e. “they found much cattle and property and spoils.”

in gathering] R.V. in taking.

Pulpit Commentary

Verse 25. - Both riches with the dead bodies. The Hebrew text reads literally, both riches and dead bodies (no article). The וּפְגָרִים of the text, however, appears in several ("old authorities," Revised Version) manuscripts, as וּבְגָדִים ("garments"), and the versions of both Septuagint and Vulgate lend their authority to this reading. Jewels. The Hebrew term is כְלֵי, the most frequent rendering of which is "vessels," so rendered, that is, a hundred and sixty times out of about three hundred and eight times in all of its occurrence. It is, however, a word of very generic quality, and is rendered as here "jewels" about twenty-five other times. It would seem nugatory to tell us that there were "dead bodies," in the bald rendering of "and dead bodies." Our Authorized Version rendering, "riches with the dead bodies," of course both ingeniously glosses the difficulty and makes a sufficiently good meaning. 2 Chronicles 20:25

Keil and Delitzsch Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament

So Jehoshaphat, with his people, came (as Jahaziel had announced, not to fight, but only to make booty) and found among them (בּהם, among or by the fallen) in abundance both wealth and corpses and precious vessels. The mention of פּגרים as part of the booty, between רכוּשׁ and the precious vessels, is somewhat surprising. Some Codd. (4 Kennic. and 3 de Rossi) and various ancient editions (Complut., the Brixenian used by Luther, the Bomberg. of date 1518 and 21, and the Mnster) have, instead of it, בּנדים; but it is very questionable if the lxx and Vulg. have it (cf. de Rossi Variae Lectt. ad h. l.). בּגדים, garments, along with רכוּשׁ, moveable property (cattle, tents, etc.), seems to suit better, and is therefore held by Dathe and Berth. to be the correct and original reading. Yet the proofs of this are not decisive, for פגרים is much better attested, and we need not necessarily take רכוּשׁ to mean living and dead cattle; but just as רכוּשׁ denotes property of any kind, which, among nomadic tribes, consists principally in cattle, we may also take פּגרים in the signification of slain men and beasts - the clothes of the men and the accoutrements and ornaments of the beasts (cf. Judges 8:26) being a by no means worthless booty. Garments as such are not elsewhere met with in enumerations of things taken as booty, in Judges 8:26 only the purple robes of the Midianite princes being spoken of; and to the remark that the before-mentioned פּגרים has given rise to the changing of בּגדים into פּגרים, we may oppose the equally well-supported conjecture, that the apparently unsuitable meaning of the word פגרים may have given rise to the alteration of it into בּגדים. חמדות כּלי are probably in the main gold and silver ornaments, such as are enumerated in Judges 8:25. And they spoiled for themselves משּׂא לאין, "there was not carrying," i.e., in such abundance that it could not be carried away, removed, and plundered in three days, because the booty was so great. The unusually large quantity of booty is accounted for by the fact that these peoples had gone forth with all their property to drive the Israelites out of their inheritance, and to take possession of their land for themselves; so that this invasion of Judah was a kind of migration of the peoples, such as those which, at a later time, have been repeated on a gigantic scale, and have poured forth from Central Asia over the whole of Europe. In this, the purpose of the hostile hordes, we must seek the reason for their destruction by a miracle wrought of God. Because they intended to drive the people of Israel out of the land given them by God, and to destroy them, the Lord was compelled to come to the help of His people, and to destroy their enemies.